Page 103 of Dark Captivation

He laughed in a nasally sort of way, combing his fingers through his scraggly white beard. “What rock are you living under, missy? War’s been declared, for a good couple weeks now and that Monster King isn’t taking many prisoners. We’re lucky to still be alive. It’s a bloodbath out there. And not just in mage territories. The monster sent his armies all over the world. The shifters are running scared. Only the humans haven’t been invaded yet. But that’s only a matter of time.”

This couldn’t be true. If it was, it would mean that Malek waged war right after I arrived. There was no way he could do something so cruel. It would mean that everything he told me from day one was a lie.

I felt sick to my stomach. If this old man was right, then there was nothing I could have done to stop this war in the first place.

The old mage carried on explaining the stark situation outside of Demon City; but while I saw his lips move, I couldn’t hear a word. My ears shut down to protect me from the dread that slowly rose in the back of my throat like bile.

Anger, betrayal and shock mixed in my gut. I couldn’t bear this pain that ripped my heart in two.

My walls broke down and finally I heard again, all due to one familiar voice.

“Livienne!” Someone shouted. It wasn’t Malek or Ferina.

My knees straightened and I followed the path down to the end of the cell block. In the darkest corner of the room, in the final cell on the right stood three pairs of eyes I thought I might never see again.

Chasten, Blake and Payton, the demi-gods who had kidnapped, emotionally tortured and then awakened fathomless desire in me.

My mates! My soul sang. The same mates who killed my parents, I remembered, tamping down my emotions.

They looked like they’d been chewed up and spit back out. Their clothes were splattered with holes and blood. Their gaunt faces were smeared in dirt but even that couldn’t hide their regal shine.

My lips didn’t know what to say and by the varied thoughts and emotions that marked their faces, they didn’t know what to say either.

Finally, looking angry as hell, Blake took charge, injecting himself in front of Chasten and Payton.

In a slow and exasperated tone, he said, “It’s about damn time.”